Surrender
by Cassidy Alice
Summary: Giving in doesn't mean giving up.
1. Gone

_Um...I have no idea where this came from. I wrote part of this a while ago and I wasn't going to post it, but my little sister was begging me to and apparently I'm a pushover so I posted this. I hope it's not too bad and that the characters aren't too OOC. Enjoy!_

Disclaimer: I own nothing :(

* * *

**Prologue: Gone**

Toph wasn't particularly glad to be back in Ba Sing Se, but after all these years of being with her parents and being treated like the helpless girl they thought she was, she didn't care where she ended up as long as it was far away from Gaoling and her parents. It still irritated her that after running away and helping Aang save the world, her parents had still treated her like a small child who needed protection. Her parents had been so afraid that she would run away again and get hurt that they had assigned another earthbender to watch after her. Taking him down had been child's play and she supposed she had disappeared from Gaoling long before the earthbender regained consciousness. Standing now on the threshold of the Impenetrable City, she felt slightly better. At least here, her parents couldn't get to her.

It was a bit of a walk to the train, but Toph didn't really mind. It felt so good to be free, to do things without having her parents constantly worrying over her. Truthfully, Toph missed them, even if they had tried shutting her away from the world again. But running away was the only thing she could have done. Her parents hadn't agreed when she asked if she could go outside of their estate. When she asked if she could teach earthbending, her parents had vehemently shot the idea down. So she ran away. Again. At least here in Ba Sing Se, she could find a job as an earthbending master. It shouldn't be too hard, she thought. She could try to find a boat that would take her to Kyoshi Island. After all, Suki _had _offered to let her stay if she ever needed a break from her parents. Then again, the thought of spending all that time on a wooden boat and not being able to see was slightly disconcerting, so Toph evaluated her other options. Visiting Sokka and Katara at the South Pole was out of the question. She didn't care much for the cold and not being able to see made her feel truly helpless. She could have visited Zuko and Mai in the Fire Nation, but they were submerged in their work and Aang was always flying back and forth from place to place. So that left Toph with her last option: working in Ba Sing se. This will be _loads_ of fun, she thought grimly, as she boarded the train that was to take her to the heart of the Earth Kingdom capital.

She never made it to her destination.

* * *

Katara felt drained of all energy and she didn't know why. She and Sokka had been holed up all day in a small cabin on the ship that was taking them to Kyoshi Island so she hadn't been doing much of anything, but she still felt so tired. Ever since they had left the South Pole, she had been eager to get to Kyoshi Island, especially since Suki had invited Aang and Toph as well. It had been months since she had seen the blind earthbender and the Avatar, though it felt more like years. She missed talking with Aang and Toph and spending time together like they all they had before Ozai's defeat. A part of her was nervous, though. She wondered how much they had all changed, how much _she_ had changed.

I'm being silly, she thought, focusing instead on the endless blue ocean. From somewhere outside, she heard passengers shuffling to the deck to receive their dinner. They were making something that smelled positively rotten, so Katara didn't bother getting up. Sokka, however, was out the door and back in minutes, bringing in a heap of food. He handed Katara a plate, but she just shook her head so he shrugged and set it aside for her.

"I think I'll go talk a walk," she said, as Sokka wrapped up some of his food to save for later. "There's not much to do."

Sokka nodded. "I'll be here, taking a nap."

Katara smiled and disappeared from the cabin onto the lower deck that was deserted. Most of the passengers were either in their rooms or on the upper deck eating, so it was relatively quiet. Katara watched the ocean waves lap at the side of the boat, momentarily forgetting about her intentions to talk a walk along the deck. It was lonely on the lower deck, and she suddenly wished Sokka had come with her She knew him, though. He infinitely preferred sleeping or eating to taking a walk most of the time. She never understood why. She was so busy wondering why, that she didn't notice several figures dressed in black sneak up behind her.

Sokka, of course, was fast asleep by the time Katara was attacked.

* * *

Mai walked with slow strides towards the courtyard, a leaden expression on her face. She was bored to tears without something or _someone_ to keep her occupied, but there was nothing she could do about it. Zuko was busy going over some last minute proposals and was scheduled to meet with some officials later so Mai had the whole day to herself. She had done everything she could think of, but still there wasn't much to do. Idly, she gazed at her reflection in one of her daggers and smiled. Zuko had mentioned something about several rebel groups being responsible for multiple disappearing lately and she wondered why people didn't take extra precautions to protect themselves. It was useful to have something like the small stiletto daggers she kept hidden in her sleeves. A few minutes later, her daggers were useless. When she was attacked, she thought it rather ironic that _she_ couldn't protect herself and that her daggers were suddenly ineffectual.

* * *

Suki had fought with some strange opponents before, but when several men clad in bizarre black outfits attacked Kyoshi Island, she didn't know whether to take them seriously or whether to burst out laughing. It was the strangest thing she had ever seen and she was at a loss for what to do. The men, however, were not. With lightning fast moves, Suki and her fellow warriors were disarmed and disabled. The last thing Suki remembered was seeing a strange man with several earrings before blacking out.

* * *

Sokka landed in the Fire Nation several days later, looking ragged and tired. Several people stared at his unkempt appearance in disgust as he made his way to the palace, but he was too tired to care. The only thing on his mind, was finding Aang and Zuko and within minutes, he was on the threshold of the palace. He didn't know how he convinced the guards that he wasn't some vagabond roaming the palace city, but he managed to get into the throne room where he found a nearly hysterical Zuko. Under normal circumstances, he would have asked the Firelord what was wrong, maybe even teased him a little bit, but he was too exhausted at this point to do much of anything. He barely had the strength to stand; his feet were so sore after all the running and walking he had done.

"She's gone," Sokka said his voice hollow and broken. His dull blue eyes gazed at Aang as if the airbender knew what he was talking about.

Aang sighed. What on earth happened? He wondered. Sokka looked dead on his feet. His hair was tousled, his clothes stained with mud and he looked as if he hadn't eaten in a week.

"Who's gone?"

"Katara," he said, his voice sounding oddly choked. "We were on our way to Kyoshi Island to visit Suki and one night, she just disappeared. I looked all over the ship. I even had the captain stop and I checked underwater. I couldn't find her anywhere."

Zuko gazed hard at the warrior. "There was no sign of her?"

Sokka shook his head. "When the boat docked in Kyoshi, the other Kyoshi warriors said Suki had disappeared also. They mentioned something about being attacked and Suki being kidnapped. Toph's missing too. I visited her parents and they said she ran away. I got a letter from the Earth King saying that a Dai Lee agent spotted her in Ba Sing Se on a train, but she's gone."

It would certainly explain his appearance, Aang thought.

"There's something going on."

"I don't need you to tell me that," Zuko snapped. "Mai's missing too. It's obvious that whoever did this knew who they were attacking."

Sokka looked like he wanted to retaliate, but he didn't have it in him to muster up a retort.

"We'll find them," Aang said, hoping to alleviate whatever tension lingered before all hell broke loose.

"How?" Zuko demanded. "They could be anywhere."

"We'll find them," Aang said resolutely. If Katara and the others were lost, he wouldn't stop looking for them until he found them.

* * *

Far away in some unknown forest, a shadowy figure threaded between the trees, his black cloak billowing out behind him. A crescent moon hung in the sky and millions of stars twinkled high above. From somewhere up in the trees, an owl hooted and crickets began chirping their own strange melodies, but the figure disregarded everything. The only thing that was on his mind was the prisoner that was waiting for him back home.

* * *

_Please review :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	2. Shadows

_I know I haven't updated in a really long time, but I've been really busy lately and haven't had much time to write anything longer than a oneshot. But I finally got around to writing and posting this. I know the likelihood of this happening (or having happened) is virtually nonexistent, but a girl needs to write something crazy every now and then. The plot is loosely based on Richard Connell's short story The Most Dangerous Game. Enjoy!_

* * *

**Chapter I: Shadows **

Colonel Mongke took off his cloak, leaned back in his chair and smiled a toothy grin. There were something things he enjoyed, and other things he _really_ enjoyed. His new hobby fell into the latter category. Idly, Mongke played with a small fire in the hollow of his hand. So strange, he thought, how things had suddenly changed. A short while ago, he had been living a comfortable life, getting a decent pay, and had been the leader of the infamous Rough Rhinos. All that was well and good, he reasoned, but what was the point of working if you didn't enjoy your job? Being part of the Rough Rhinos had been quite an experience, but since Ozai's fall from power, he had no idea what happened to the other Rhinos and he certainly wasn't going to go looking for them. So, he used the money he had saved from years of service to Ozai, to build a decent house in the middle of nowhere and pursed a life of leisure, until he found a new…hobby.

It probably wasn't the best term to describe his new-found pastime, but it was the word the former Rough Rhino settled for. Most people tried their hands at several things after losing a job, but there wasn't much he was good at besides, hunting, fighting and firebending, so Colonel Mongke had contented himself with this.

As he stared at his latest prisoner that was brought before him, he smiled. He loved watching the man squirm and he absolutely loved knowing that he instilled fear in all his prisoners. A man could get used to this, he thought, grinning at his guest. His prisoner turned visibly paler and began quaking before him. Mongke just glanced at one of the men he had hired, and the prisoner was taken away.

Mongke watched him leave, feeling immensely satisfied with himself. Within a few hours, the sun would rise again and the game that was his hobby would begin all over again.

* * *

Katara's hands were almost always bandaged now. Her slender brown fingers were wrapped in bloodstained cloths that seemed to do little good. She stared at the rows of benders crammed into the room and watched several healers rushing from bed to bed, healing them. Suppressing a shudder, she made her way to the far end of the room and began healing an injured man.

The first time she had entered the room, she had almost passed out. The smell of blood and infected flesh had been so noxious that a single breath was more than enough to send anyone running away. The guards with their strange tattoos and firebending had been the only thing that prevented her from running. That and the other healers she saw there. She desperately wanted to know why they were all there, but she had received some information soon enough and she was less than happy to be using her healing abilities on the poor benders that lay in that prison like room.

The man she was healing suddenly stirred and whispered a name, bringing his hand to tuck a loose strand of Katara's hair behind her ear, before resting it on her cheek.

"You've grown so big and beautiful," he said, his eyes shining. "Your mother would be proud."

"I'm not you're daughter," she whispered, gently removing his hand away from her.

The man wheezed and smiled. "So like you to deny it. You always said that, even as a little girl. I remember. Your mother and I used to tease you about it all the time remember?"

"Please stop," Katara begged. "You're not home. I'm not your daughter. My name is Katara and you're a prisoner here."

The man gave her a quizzical look, breaking out of his delirious state. "You're not…you're not…?"

Katara shook her head and the man shuddered.

"What is this place?"

Hell. A nightmare. Purgatory. Katara could think of a thousand different words to describe it, but she was afraid of upsetting the man.

"I don't know," she lied.

The wounded bender just closed his eyes and emitted a long sigh. "It's a ghastly nightmare, that's all," he whispered. "Just a nightmare. I'll wake up soon." He sighed deeply and fell into a peaceful slumber. Katara watched him and wished she could believe that, but she didn't.

By the time she and the other healers were relieved of duty, it was late at night. Katara made her way back to her jail-cell like room and collapsed into her bed. She was too tired to do much of anything so sleep should have come to her, but she was wide awake for quite some time. She sat in the darkness of her cell and thought about how she had ended up in this godforsaken place. She played the scene over and over again in her mind. She remembered being attacked by several firebenders while on the ship. They had given her two options: to come quietly with them or to fight them, and Katara had known that fighting them was out of the question; the firebenders would probably just burn the ship to a crisp and leave the innocent people to die. The other option hadn't been very appealing and she had tried to waterbend herself off the ship to draw the firebenders away, but they had caught her before she had gotten far. After that, she didn't remember much. Everything was hazy, like remembering bits and pieces of a dream.

Katara sighed. She wished Sokka was with her. Or Aang. They would have distracted her somehow. It would certainly have taken her mind off this gruesome situation. She still didn't know the entirety of it, but she preferred it that way. Whatever little she knew about the people being used as bait of some sort, was more than enough. Katara shivered and closed her eyes and fell asleep dreaming of Sokka and Aang trying to find her.

* * *

Colonel Mongke was disappointed. His latest arrival was completely calm before him. It wasn't normal. Most people trembled before him, but this prisoner was different. Mongke circled around him like a vulture hovering above prey, and inspected him. He seemed like a strong, young man, definitely a skilled bender. Earthbender no doubt, Mongke thought, noticing the man's green attire.

"Where are you from?"

"Earth Kingdom," was the emotionless response.

"You're an earthbender, right?"

The young man nodded curtly.

"Wasn't easy to subdue," one guard muttered. "Put up a fight. Would have won too, if he wasn't outnumbered. Just like that waterbender."

At this, the earthbender looked at Mongke suspiciously. "What waterbender?"

Mongke just smiled. "What difference does it make to you?"

The young man shrugged. "I knew..._know_ a waterbender."

Now it was Mongke's turn to gaze at the bender suspiciously. "Who are you?"

"_What difference does it make to you_?" He retorted.

Mongke growled and brandished two fire daggers. "Who are you?" he repeated.

The earthbender gazed at him unimpressed. "The name's Haru. Why am I here?"

"You'll know soon enough," was Mongke's cryptic response before Haru was taken away to some dusty room in the strange house. He still didn't know what any of this meant, but he was determined to find out. He momentarily abandoned any thoughts of sleep and tried to figure out what was going on. He had been in Ba Sing Se to help with the reconstruction. He had been walking along the outskirts of the city, trying to get home, when several benders had approached him. They had said something about taking a vacation before attacking him. He would have easily taken them, just like that guard had said, but he had been outnumbered.

_Just like that waterbender_. The guard's words suddenly came back to him and Haru glanced thoughtfully out the small window in his room. He didn't know too many waterbenders and usually the only waterbenders he met out of the Water Tribes were healers. Was it possible that they were referring to Katara? And if they were, what was she doing here?

* * *

Toph tried to tune out the incessant bickering of the two men that guarded her wooden cell, but it wasn't easy when their deep voices were raised in argument. They were fighting about whose turn it was to relieve another man from duty elsewhere and Toph was getting irritated. Did all of these men fight like this?

"Would you two ladies mind keeping it down," Toph said.

"We're men," one of them pointed out.

"Yeah right," Toph scoffed. "Real men don't attack earthbenders on trains where there's no earth to bend. You're all just cowards."

"We were told to bring you here, so we did. Besides, taking you off the train was a lot easier than fighting you would have been. I don't know about the others, but I'm not too keen on fighting the world's greatest earthbender."

"Smart move," Toph said, sarcastically. "Now would you two keep it down or let me out, or something?"

"Be quiet," the guard hissed. "You'll be let out soon enough."

"I will?" Toph asked, confused.

Both guards grinned. "But of course."


	3. Mysterious

**Chapter II: Mysterious**

Haru was rudely awakened the following morning by two guards and a strange looking old man. Neither one of them bothered to offer him any breakfast. They hauled him to his feet and wordlessly led him through the dark corridors.

Conversation with them wasn't easy. Haru tried countless times to ask where he was being taken, but neither one of the men bothered to tell him. The longer the men kept the truth from him, the more Haru started wondering exactly _what_ he was supposed to do. It wasn't as if the men needed his help or anything. Judging by the way he was being treated, he was sure he was being kept prisoner, but it irritated him to no end that he had no idea _why_. He wasn't asking for much; all he really wanted were some answers.

The corridor suddenly opened into a courtyard and Haru squinted in the bright early morning light. The two guards left him to go and stand by the corridor, in the shade of a tree while the old man walked to the center of the courtyard and untied his robe. Haru just watched him warily, his curiosity heightened. The old man just bowed to him and began flexing his fingers. Haru sighed and waited patiently for someone to say something. Without warning, the old man raised his hand in Haru's direction and before the earthbender could blink, a ball of fire was headed in his direction.

He drew up a solid wall of earth and the fire began to dissipate before him. But the little old man was still hurling balls of fire at him, so Haru let his wall crumble away and took a fighting stance. The old man didn't look confused or startled, but merely continued throwing everything he had at the confused earthbender. They fought for a few hours, neither one of them gaining the upper hand. Then, all at once, the old man stopped, bowed to Haru, and trotted off into another dimly lit corridor. Haru just watched him leave and blinked. Before he had time to comprehend what was going on, the two guards had dragged him back to his cell and locked him away.

* * *

Suki was perched high up in the trees, so when six men brandishing swords and calling her name came in her direction, she wasn't too worried about them finding her. What she was worried about, though, was what Sokka and Katara would do when they reached Kyoshi Island and found out she wasn't there. In her defense, though, she hadn't been planning on being taken prisoner. After two days of being chased by strange men for reasons unknown to her, though, she was more than ready to leave and go home.

"And that's the problem," she muttered to herself, silently climbing higher up. She didn't know where Kyoshi Island was in relation to where she was. If there had been a village here, she was sure someone could have directed her back to her home, but the island looked virtually uninhabited save for the strange men running after her.

Suki watched the men leave, but she remained in the tree until dusk, when she saw the six men walking in a circle around a young woman. Suki thought she recognized the prisoner and lowered herself to a better perch to take a closer look.

"Could someone please explain to me what's going on?" the prisoner asked in a monotone voice.

The guards didn't bother to answer and Mai sighed.

"If you're not going to answer, then could you…?" she began, but she stopped when two men walking next to her suddenly keeled over. The other four turned to face her with their swords.

"What happened?" the leader demanded. "What did you do to them?"

"Nothing."

"Don't lie to me, you little…" the leader began, but a rather large stone whizzed through the air and hit him long before he could finish. He crumpled to the ground, unconscious and his subordinates spread out looking for the assailant. Mai just watched them, until she felt something smooth collide with her. She half turned to see Suki peering at her from behind a tree and her eyes widened. Silently, Mai darted after the Kyoshi Warrior and the two returned to the treetops where the guards couldn't see or hear them.

"Please tell me you're here because you know what's going on?" Suki begged, once she was sure the guards had disappeared.

Mai shrugged. "I don't have the least idea. I was brought here a while ago. Those men had me locked up until today. They said they were taking me to another place."

Suki frowned. "They wouldn't tell you why you were here?"

Mai shook her head. "Did they tell you?"

"No," Suki admitted. "Those same men were supposed to _escort_ me to another place too, but I managed to run away. But they've been looking for me."

"Well we can't stay here," Mai pointed out. "We've got to get off this stupid island."

"How do you know it's an island?" Suki asked.

"I remember being taken on a boat. And one night, they left the door to the hold open and I snuck on deck. We were sailing to some place the captain called Rendezvous A. He said it's in the middle of the ocean, between the Fire Nation and the Earth Kingdom."

"Oh no," Suki wailed. "There's dozens of tiny little islands. We could be on any one of them."

"It doesn't really matter which island we're on as long as we get off of it," Mai said. "We need to leave soon."

"We can't," Suki said. "Believe me, I've thought of every escape route possible, but there's no way off this island."

"Boats," Mai said.

Suki shook her head. "I thought of that, but the boats aren't kept here. They never dock here. They have captains use them to patrol the bay and the surrounding areas."

Mai's face fell. "How do you know?"

"I've been up here for a while and those guards aren't exactly quiet when they talk about all their plans."

"So we're just going to stay here?" Mai demanded.

Suki nodded. "And look for a way to get off this weird island. I don't know about you, but I've already had more than enough of this place."

* * *

The first thing Katara noticed as she entered the room was that despite the number of healers and injured benders there were it was unusually quiet. Normally, the room was buzzing with activity as several healers rushed to finish their jobs under the watchful eyes of the two firebenders. Today, in spite of the glares to the two guards were giving and the orders they were barking out, not one of the healers was doing anything, save for one who was crying in a corner. A few others were assembled around her, murmuring something Katara couldn't hear and comforting her but the young woman just kept sobbing. It wasn't until the guards threatened to firebend on her that she and the other healers resumed their duties.

Katara wanted to know what exactly had happened, but her short stay on that strange island had taught her that answers seldom came and when they did, they often didn't satisfy her. She had learned that it was better to ask the other healers about what went on rather than attempt to engage the guards in a conversation. Accordingly, she found out exactly what had happened from the distraught healer herself. It wasn't very pleasant, but not wholly unexpected.

"Those guards made us use our waterbending to alter the poor man's memory," the healer said, dabbing at her eyes. "He probably won't remember anything about this place."

"That's awful," Katara said. She remembered using her waterbending to help Jet remember exactly what the Dai Lee had done to him, but she didn't know that waterbending could do the opposite. She gave a small shudder. She didn't really want to be forced to do that to someone.

The healer sniffed. "It gets worse," she said, giving Katara a tearstained glance.

How much worse could it get? Katara wondered.

"I know why we're here. We're more than just healers."

* * *

Zuko leaned back in his throne and fixed the young lieutenant with a serious gaze. He was puzzled to say the least; nothing about this strange case made any sense but then again, certain things seldom did. The young Firelord cleared his throat and began again.

"Tell me again what happened, Lieutenant."

Lieutenant Toru fidgeted before him. "I…um… don't know to what extent this is true, but according to my sister, I disappeared on duty two weeks ago and reappeared yesterday."

"And you have no idea where you were?"

Lt. Toru shook his head. "It's all rather hazy and you'll be inclined to think I'm a lunatic."

"Let's hear it anyway."

"Well, I don't remember being captured, but I remember sailing on a boat and arriving at an unknown island. I was locked away the first night and when morning came, two men escorted me to an arena where I fought an old firebender. I was locked away again and then after that, let out periodically. I don't remember much else, but there were lots of other men like me there and we always got hurt. The guards would send us to a room several healers would take care of our injuries. Then we were released outside again and the cycle started all over again."

Zuko nodded. He understood some of what the Lieutenant had said but still had so many questions.

"The night before I left," Lt. Toru said. "I was taken to a room and some healer used her waterbending on me." Zuko exchanged glances with Sokka and Aang standing next to him. "She did something to my memories, distorted them, and made them hazy. I can't remember much of my experience there, but everything else is crystal clear. For instance, I can tell you what I was doing on duty last month or…"

"That won't be necessary," Zuko said, politely.

"Do you happen to know what that waterbender who distorted your memories looks like?" Sokka wondered.

Lt. Toru smiled. "Yeah, I do. She was actually very pretty."

"Did she have long brown hair and blue eyes?" Sokka asked.

"She had blue eyes," Lt. Toru said. "But her hair was short and black."

"Oh. Thanks anyway," Sokka said, looking crestfallen.

"If you remember anything else, like where that island is, please tell me," Zuko said. "We need to know as soon as possible."

Lt. Toru bowed. "Of course, Firelord Zuko."

* * *

Night was slow in coming, but when it did, most of the prisoners at the Capital City Prison in the Fire Nation were fast asleep. As usual, the multitude of guards posted on duty were doing their rounds, but that didn't seem to faze two men cloaked by the cover of night as they diligently sawed through the thick walls of a cell. Every now and then, they used special tools to create a hole in the wall, and when it was finally big enough, one of their most dangerous prisoners stepped out of his cell and onto the ledge that ran along the side of the prison. Kahchi glanced briefly at the guards walking below and motioned for the two men to follow him. Silently, the three of them slipped away to the other side of the prison, where it was safer to talk.

The Capital City Prison was built inside a hollow crater, embedded in the stone, and Kahchi had always thought that the idea of building a prison in a hollow crater was pointless, but now he realized that if nothing else, the crater provided a safe place for him to talk. It had been a while since he had seen his comrades and at first it was awkward to strike up a conversation, but gradually the awkwardness melted away and the three were able to talk freely.

"I didn't think you two were coming," Kahchi admitted. "I was working on my own escape plan." He heard Yeh-Lu laugh behind his mask.

"Didn't think we'd come either, but things change. We managed to escape." He handed Kahchi his Guan Dao swords and Kahchi smiled, fingering the blades.

"I thought I lost these," he whispered.

Vachir, the second man, smiled. "Perhaps, but we found them."

Kahchi looked at Yeh-Lu and Vachir, a questioning glance in his eyes. "Where did you find them?"

"The old hideout."

Kahchi nodded and then turned to Yeh-Lu. "What happened to Ogodei? Do either of you know?"

Yeh- Lu shrugged. "It's hard to say, but I'm sure he's probably locked away somewhere or maybe he already escaped."

Kahchi nodded. "Shouldn't we free him, then?"

Yeh-Lu grunted and Kahchi knew he was smiling behind his iron mask. "I thought you'd never ask."

And without another word, the three convicts disappeared into the inky blackness of the night.

* * *

_Sorry for such a long gap between updates. Hopefully I can get the next chapter up soon. In the meantime, reviews are greatly appreciated. :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	4. Discoveries

**Chapter III: Discoveries**

After Ozai's defeat, Kahchi didn't think he'd ever return to the Capital City in the Fire Nation, but he found himself roaming the dimly lit streets with Vachir and Yeh-Lu, in search of Ogodei. He wasn't pleased to be back, especially since there would be a price for his head if word got out that he had escaped, but anything was better than rotting away in that dump that passed for a prison.

Kahchi didn't know how long he was in that prison; it could have been weeks or months. But he was beginning to realize how easily solitary confinement eroded a person's sanity. He still had no idea what day it was, what time it was, or where he was. During the war, he knew every street in the Fire Nation like the back of his hand, but now, everything looked so unfamiliar. He wasn't sure which sector of the city they were in, what type of people lived there, what type of petty criminals to be on the lookout for; it was quite irritating.

Vachir fell into step beside him. "You look worried," he noted.

"Can you believe it?" Kahchi asked. "I used to know this place inside out and backwards, but now I can't tell where we are. It's infuriating. And I was only locked away for a short time."

Vachir grinned. "That's why imprisonment works so well. It doesn't take much for a prisoner to lose his or her sanity."

"I hope Ogodei still has his wits with him," Kahchi grumbled. "We're going to need it if we're ever going to find the boss."

Yeh-Lu grunted. "Not much of a leader, is he? Rumor has it he escaped a long time ago."

Kahchi stared at him. "Without us? Why?"

"Honestly, I don't think he really needs us. He is a firebender, after all. But maybe he was just biding his time until we could find him."

"Maybe," Kahchi murmured as he followed his friends.

* * *

Oyaji started awkwardly at the six little girls assembled before him. Normally, Suki was in charge of training the new recruits, but it was becoming increasingly difficult to find someone to replace her ever since she disappeared. He would have asked another one of the Kyoshi Warriors to train the girls, but since they were all busy, and he didn't think it would do any good if he pulled them away from their jobs.

"Any luck with the girls?"

Oyaji turned to see Ty Lee standing beside him. She was wearing her pink outfit again, so it took the old village leader a minute to recognize her without her uniform and face paint on.

"Um…" Oyaji said. "Not really, no. Any news on Suki?"

Ty Lee shook her head. "It's like she vanished completely. The other girls and I checked every inch of the island for clues, but there's no sign of her or the strange guy who attacked us. I'll probably have to report this to Zuko. I'm sure he could do something about it; he's got lots of people working under him, so finding information should be easy for him."

"Don't you think the Firelord will be a little too busy to help us?" Oyaji wondered, scratching his beard.

Ty Lee giggled. "That's crazy, Oyaji. Zuko always has time for old friends."

"Very well. I'll see if some of the other girls are interested in helping you. It's going to take quite a few people to find them."

"Them?" Ty Lee repeated.

Oyaji just blinked at her. "You mean you didn't hear? Katara and Toph are missing too."

"When did this happen?"

"Around the same time Suki disappeared."

"Katara, Toph, Suki," Ty Lee murmured, counting the names on her fingers. "They weren't randomly attacked then. Whoever it is must be targeting the people who helped imprison Ozai. That means Mai and I could be next. We did betray Azula."

"Then you'd better go warn her," Oyaji said. "I'll see what I can do here."

* * *

"Hey, are you okay?"

Katara looked up to see another healer watching her. He looked worried, but smiled in relief when she responded.

"Just a stomachache," she said. "Must have been that awful food they gave us for breakfast."

The healer just smiled. "Yeah, you better get used to it. Sometimes, they serve us old food that's close to rotting. It hasn't killed anyone yet, but we all feel awful after we eat it. You just learn to get used to it after a while."

"Sounds like you've been here a long time," Katara said.

The healer shrugged. "A few months maybe. But not that long."

"You're a healer, right? Where are you from?"

"Northern Water Tribe. Big tribe full of people and ice."

Katara chuckled."Yeah, I've been there."

"I didn't think earthbenders liked the North Pole."

"Earthbender?" Katara burst out laughing. "You think I'm an earthbender?"

"Well, you look like one and aren't you here to be healed?"

"No, I'm a healer too."

"But I've never seen you before. You're not from my tribe."

She shook her head. "I'm Katara. I'm from the Southern Water Tribe."

"I'm Sheng. I didn't know there were any waterbenders left in our sister tribe. I thought the Fire Nation wiped them all out during the war."

"There aren't and they did," Katara admitted. "I'm the last one."

"Then shouldn't you be in the South Pole?" Sheng demanded. "What are you doing here?"

"That's what I'd like to know."

"You mean, you haven't tried to escape yet?"

"After that food I just ate, I'll be lucky if I can move," Katara said. "Why would I attempt to escape when there are firebenders just waiting to use their firebending on me?"

Sheng shrugged. "Most of us have tried at least once. This job is not exactly fun."

"What is this job exactly?"

"You don't know?"

"I don't know a lot of things," Katara said, dully.

"Well, there's this crazy firebender who runs this joint. Apparently, during the war, he was a hunter for Ozai; used to hunt people like that were against the Firelord. He's so fond of hunting he had powerful benders brought to this island just so he could hunt them. It's a game for him. He even kidnapped a bunch of healers like us, just so we could heal his prisoners and the game starts all over again. And sometimes, we're the bait."

Katara's eyes widened. "Really? Who is this guy?"

"Some nut ball firebender. But he must be really good because apparently he even hunted the Avatar."

"The Avatar? But that's impossible. I know the Avatar."

"I think everyone knows Avatar Aang." Sheng said.

"No, I know him personally. I travelled with him."

He laughed. "Yeah right. What did you do, teach him waterbending or something?"

"Actually, I did."

"You're pulling my leg."

"No, really," Katara insisted. "I know Aang. He's my…friend."

"Alright then, who is this crazy nut ball who's doing this?" Sheng demanded. "Since you travelled with the Avatar, you must know."

"We met a lot of firebenders," Katara said, frowning. "It could be anyone."

"So you don't know? Are you even a waterbender?"

"Maybe you'd like to see my waterbending?" Katara asked, getting slightly irritated.

"Sure," Sheng said. "Tell you what. Meet me outside after your last shift and we'll see just how well you can _waterbend_."

"And I was beginning to think he was nice," Katara muttered, watching Sheng's retreating figure.

When Katara's shift was finally over, she met Sheng outside as planned. A number of other healers had assembled and were staring wide eyed at the two.

"You really don't have to do this," a younger girl whispered to Katara. "Sheng has been like this ever since he came here. He starts acting real nice, digs up information on people, and challenges them to a duel. He's a very skilled waterbender, so no one on this island has beaten him yet."

"He told you this?"

"Sort of. I'm the only one he hasn't challenged yet. I'm just a healer. I don't know anything besides the basics. But Sheng has spent years learning some complex forms. He's training to become a master."

"He's not a master yet?" Katara asked, surprised.

"Honestly, I don't know what he is. Sheng isn't even his real name."

"How do you know?"

The young healer rolled her clear blue eyes. "When I asked him what his name was, he spent a good three minutes staring at me before answering. I'm positive he made that name up, though I don't blame him. You never know who you can trust."

"I guess that's true," Katara said, sighing. "Let's just get this over with."

"You can quit any time you want," Sheng said, as Katara turned to face him. "Frankly, most of us here don't believe you. We've never even heard of you before."

You wouldn't if you were stuck in either of the Water Tribes, Katara thought, dully.

"I'm training to become a waterbending master," he continued. "So if you really don't know any waterbending, you might as well as forfeit now."

Katara smirked. "Oh, I don't mind. I'm a waterbending master, myself, so I don't think I'll forfeit."

The other healers glanced at Katara.

Sheng shot her a nasty look and immediately launched his attack. He had every move planned, but he didn't get to use them because Katara made short work of him and ten minutes later, she left Sheng, sopping wet and irate, to sit in the courtyard while the other healers whispered about his first defeat.

Katara ran as fast as she could to her cell and shut herself in as fast as she could. Fighting Sheng had been easy, but she had been deathly afraid that one of the guards would jump up behind her and firebend her until she was paralyzed. She prayed that none of the guards saw them. She didn't know what they did with troublesome prisoners, but whatever it was, it probably wasn't good.

"At least I know why I'm here," she said to herself. She finally understood why the healer she had spoken to yesterday had said it got worse. "And I stupidly asked her how much worse it could get." Katara sighed. She loved adventure, but she was more than ready for this one to end.

* * *

Zuko was supposed to be eating lunch, but ever since Mai had disappeared, he hadn't really been doing much of anything besides trying to find her. Sokka had gotten every single map from the vast collection in the palace and he and Aang were scrutinizing them, looking for small islands or various remote villages where rebels might take the others. They weren't having any luck though.

"We've got nothing," Sokka said, slumping into his seat. "We need…"

"Firelord Zuko, you have a visitor," A guard interrupted.

Zuko just scowled. "Can't I eat my lunch in peace?"

"I'm really sorry to disturb you, Firelord Zuko," the visitor said, giggling. "But I've got some important news."

"Ty Lee?" Sokka said, ogling at the newest Kyoshi Warrior. "Aren't you supposed to be on Kyoshi."

"Well, yeah, but when Oyaji told me that Suki, Katara, and Toph, had been kidnapped, I came here to warn Mai since she and I could be next."

"You're too late. Mai disappeared days ago." Zuko said. "We've been trying to find them."

"Then that means I'm the only one left," Ty Lee said. "I could be next."

"No offense," Sokka said. "But what makes you think the kidnappers want you?"

"Well it's obvious they're targeting people who helped imprison Ozai. They might go for me, then you, Zuko, and Aang. Who knows?"

"Do you happen to know anything?" Aang asked.

Ty Lee shook her head. "Nothing more than you do. Oh, but there was another who was also waiting to see you. He said it was urgent."

Zuko sighed. "Alright." He nodded to the guard and he disappeared for a minute and returned, bringing Lt. Toru with him. The young man had managed to find something and before long, he, Sokka, Aang, Zuko, and Ty Lee were seated on Appa and flying towards the Earth Kingdom.

It was dark when they landed, but Lt. Toru led them to a secluded cove.

"I think you'll find this worth your time, Firelord."

"Isn't this Full Moon Bay?" Aang asked. Lt. Toru nodded. "What are we doing here?"

"After the war, ferrying refugees to Ba Sing Se was discontinued. Now, ships operate on regular schedules that take passengers to various places. The thing is, this is a remote area; not many people come to Full Moon Bay to find passages to Ba Sing Se or other places. It's a perfect place for a rebel hideout."

"There's a hideout here?" Sokka repeated. "Are you sure?"

"Positive," the Lieutenant nodded. "It's definitely a rebel hideout because it's filled with maps of various prisons and komodo-rhino saddles. And, there are maps of all sorts of strange places that aren't on a regular map."

"Where exactly is this place?" Ty Lee wondered. Lt. Toru motioned for them to follow and led them into the hideout.

"From the looks of things, the rebels should be returning tomorrow, or two days from now at the latest. If we wait around, I'm sure we can catch them."

* * *

As a Kyoshi Warrior, Suki had spent a lot of time in the trees, but she never thought Mai had. Mai, however, was just as adept as Suki was, moving from tree to tree so silently, no one would have seen or heard them unless they had known they were there. Both girls were tired of spending so much time perched in uncomfortable positions in the trees, but they couldn't risk getting caught.

"How much longer do we have to keep this up?" Mai whispered.

Suki shrugged. "Until we can get away, I guess. Unless you have a better idea," She said, turning to face her.

Mai shrugged. "Not really."

"Then it looks like we keep going. I'm beginning to feel like a monkey, moving from tree to tree."

"Tell me about it," Mai muttered.

Suki made a move to go, but Mai suddenly stopped her.

"Wait," she said, pointing to two men walking with a small silhouette that was putting up quite a fuss about being led somewhere. "Isn't that Toph?"

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews :)_

_~ Cassidy A._


	5. The Hideout at Full Moon Bay

**Chapter IV: The Hideout at Full Moon Bay**

"This is their hideout?" Zuko said, eyeing the secret shelter built into the cliff side.

"It's actually pretty impressive for a rebel hideout," Sokka said, staring at the various passageways that branched off from the room they were in. There must have been several smaller rooms that served as bedrooms. The room they were currently standing in was clearly the main room, as it was littered with maps and papers. In one corner, several komodo-rhino saddles were stacked on top of each other and several weapons were resting on the floor.

"Those weapons look really familiar," Aang said. "But I can't remember where I've seen them."

"Lieutenant," Zuko said. "Are you sure that the rebels will be here soon?"

"According to this schedule, they have to," Toru said, handing Zuko a piece of paper. "They're due to take a ship to one of the northern villages tomorrow around this time."

Sokka squinted down at the docks. "Not many people are here. Must be convenient for them."

"That's not a rebel, is it?" Ty Lee wondered, pointing to a middle aged couple running hurriedly towards the boat.

Toru smiled. "I don't think so, but better to be safe than sorry," he chuckled, exiting the hideout and running after the couple. The instant he stopped them though, it was clear that they weren't rebels.

"We were just on our way to Omashu," the woman said. "Strange things have been happening in our town."

"Like what?" Ty Lee asked.

"Our neighbor's son disappeared and at night, we hear strange noises. Occasionally, strange people pass through, too."

"Where do you live?" Toru asked.

"A remote village, it's quite far from here."

"Any chance we could speak to your neighbor?"

"Tyro and his wife aren't home. They're looking for their son."

"Why does that name sound familiar?" Sokka said, thoughtfully.

"Because Tyro is Haru's father," Aang replied, suddenly realizing.

The man nodded. "The boy vanished some time ago and a healer who lived across the street did too. He was originally from the Northern Water Tribe, but he was in the Earth Kingdom helping his uncle, I believe."

"Nobody ever saw them taken away," the wife said. "And no one knows where they are."

"And the sad thing is, we may never find them," her husband said.

* * *

Vachir was distinctly aware of the prison alarm sounding as he and the others helped Ogodei escape, but he after making numerous successful prison breaks, he knew how to handle the reinforcements and stop the alarm. A few flaming arrows and a few of Yeh-Lu's explosives, and the guards and alarm were taken care of. Of course, finding their way back to the hideout had been another story.

"I can't believe you all didn't get me sooner," Ogodei grumbled as the four of them snuck away from the prison on foot. "I was going crazy in that nut house. It's like an insane asylum."

"Well you're out now, aren't you?" Yeh-Lu asked.

Ogodei nodded. "So, what exactly do we do now that we're free?"

"We could always return to our hideout," Vachir suggested. "I need new weapons anyway."

"Since when do we have a hideout?" Ogodei demanded. "How long have I been locked up?"

"We found an abandoned secret hideout at Full Moon Bay," Yeh-Lu said. Ogodei could have sworn the man was laughing behind that infernal mask he wore. "So we started using it as our base. We've got extra weapons and supplies there. We even have saddles for our mounts, but we don't exactly have mounts…yet."

"Any chance you know where we can get some?" Vachir wondered.

"The Black Market," said Kahchi who had been silent up until now. "There must be someone, somewhere selling komodo-rhinos."

"It's harder than you think, finding one of those beasts," Vachir replied. "If we manage to find four, we'll be lucky."

"Let's just go back to the hideout at Full Moon Bay," Yeh-Lu said. "I mean, we are supposed to catch that boat to Omashu tomorrow."

"Wait," Kahchi cried. "I know just the place to get komodo-rhinos. We'll have to forget about the boat ride though."

"Well," Ogodei said. "A komodo-rhino is far more useful than anything we could find in Omashu. Lead the way, Kahchi."

Kahchi grinned and turning around, led his companions in the opposite direction from the hideout at Full Moon Bay.

* * *

If Mai hadn't bothered to point Toph out to Suki, the Kyoshi Warrior was positive she never would have recognized the petite, blind earthbender.

"The only reason I'm not earthbending you two until your bones break is because I get nothing out of it," Toph said. "Otherwise, you two would be dead meat."

"Oh feel free to earthbend us anytime," one of her escorts trilled.

"It's not like I can get off this stupid island if I do," Toph spat.

"I'd really love some answers right about now," Suki whispered from her perch. "We need to talk to Toph, or at least let her know we're here too."

"How?" Mai asked. "It's not like we can just walk up to her."

Suki grinned and nimbly climbed down the far side of the tree, so the guards couldn't see her. When she stood on the ground without moving, Mai just raised an eyebrow. But Toph suddenly picked up on the familiar set of vibrations. She cast a quick glance in Suki's general direction and gave a slight nod as if to say she knew Mai and Suki were there.

"Keep moving, earthbender," the guard said, prodding her. "We don't have much time."

"Could you two get me some water," Toph wondered, using the sweetest voice she could muster. "I'm really thirsty."

"Alright, but don't move an inch."

"I'm blind," Toph said. "I wouldn't dare." Of course the moment the two guards vanished to find her water, Toph joined Suki and Mai.

"I didn't know you two were here," she said. "Shouldn't you be working?"

"Technically," Suki said. "But we were kidnapped, I guess."

"I don't have much time," Toph said. "Those idiotic guards are coming back. Meet me tonight outside."

"How are you going to get out?" Mai demanded.

Toph winked. "I'm the greatest earthbender in the world. I'll figure something out."

* * *

Despite having spent some time on the island, Katara still didn't know the various passageways of the stronghold on the island. So naturally, when she ended up in a remote part of the building, far away from her room, she wasn't really surprised. This particular sector was dimly lit and eerily silent. The rooms were all locked shut and only a tiny grating allowed for some light to pass through into the cell. Most of the prisoners just stared at her as she walked past and she flinched every so often as her footsteps echoed throughout the chamber. Some prisoners shot her nasty stares, but only one looked like he was smiling. Katara could have recognized his face anywhere.

"Haru?" she whispered. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing," he whispered back. "These guys got you too."

"They got a lot of people," she said simply.

Haru nodded and was about to say something when several footsteps echoed down the corridor. Katara threw him an apologetic glance and slipped away, but a short while later, Haru heard strange noises followed by a bloodcurdling scream.

* * *

"That's the last of them," Sokka said, putting the map back in its place. "I think we copied all the maps."

"Then let's leave this place," Zuko said. "It's late and I don't think those rebels are going to show up. Must've known we would be waiting."

"Shouldn't Lt. Toru and Ty Lee be back from scouting?" Aang wondered. "It's taking them a while."

"They did say they'd try to talk to as many people as they could about the rebels here," Sokka pointed out. "And Lt. Toru said he'd look into the passengers on the ships leaving from this port. It could take a little bit longer. Maybe they…oh never mind. Here's the Lieutenant."

"Anything interesting, Lieutenant?" Zuko asked. "Where's Ty Lee?"

"We were ambushed by some strange men in green robes. At first I thought they were the Dai Li and that somehow, they had some back, but one of them was a firebender. They overpowered us and took Ty Lee. But she managed to disable some of those men. I rounded them up, Sir. You should probably interrogate them."

Zuko sighed. He was beyond tired and in no mood to interrogate anyone, but Aang and Sokka had already started following the Lieutenant so Zuko hurried to catch up with them. He spent a good hour trying to pry some information from those stubborn rebels, but he didn't learn a single thing so the rebels were placed on a boat and shipped to the Fire Nation where Zuko's advisors were waiting to interrogate them as the Firelord had requested.

* * *

Suki and Mai met Toph in one of the gardens behind a house-like structure on the island. It was a breezy night and the rustling of the plants and leaves muffled their whispers as they chatted. Toph, as the two warriors suspected, didn't know much more than they did, but she had managed to figure out that the island was not too far from the Earth Kingdom's port at Full Moon Bay.

"The guard I asked said that there are ships that regularly pass this island and that sometimes their leader has them take people from the ship. According to him, they haven't taken people off ships in a while, but the last person they did take off a ship was a waterbender and that ship was headed to Kyoshi Island."

Suki groaned. "Please tell me that Katara and Sokka are not on this island."

"I think they are," Toph said. "That guard did say there was a waterbender here. It could be Katara."

"How exactly did you get the guard to tell you all this?" Mai wondered.

"I threatened him," Toph said, nonchalantly like it was no big deal. "And when he didn't give me some information, I broke his nose but I think I sprained my hand in the process."

And for the first time since they had arrived on the island, all three of them burst out laughing.


	6. Katara's Song

**Chapter V: Katara's Song**

If Katara hadn't heard footsteps coming in her direction, she just might have screamed too when she heard that strange noise followed by that terrifying scream. She ducked into a secluded alcove and watched three men pass by before making her way back to her room. She walked slowly but purposefully, acting as if nothing had happened but the guards quickly identified her as a healer and brought her over to help them.

"This girl," one said, pointing the prisoner with black hair and hazel eyes. "Is completely unbalanced. We need help. Keep her here while we get reinforcements. We should be back in a few minutes."

Katara just watched them leave and turned to the girl with a gentle smile on her face. "Are you…" she began, but she was knocked off her feet by firebending.

"You're one of them, aren't you?" the girl hissed. "You're helping them."

"No, I'm not," Katara said, shrinking back as a thin sliver of fire appeared in the girl's palm. "Really."

"I don't need your help," the girl snarled. "And I don't need you to look after me, filthy peasant."

"Azula?"

This time, it was the girl who shrank back. "How dare you compare me with that insane princess? I…I can have you enslaved for making a comment like that. My father won't settle for it! He'll…" she suddenly burst into sobs. "Spirits, I am insane, aren't I?" Before Katara could respond, she took off running. Katara just stood up, brushed herself off and realizing she was late for her shift, ran all the way back to the infirmary.

"You're late, healer," one of the firebenders said, as she collided with him. "The Colonel won't be pleased."

Colonel? She wondered. Who was that?

"I know. But I was…delayed by some other guards."

The guard motioned to the room and Katara ducked in.

Surprisingly, the room wasn't very crowded. Only three people were there, two of whom Katara recognized instantly. Haru was talking to a healer in the corner when he noticed her walk in. He gave her a quizzical look and it took Katara a moment to interpret his gaze.

_I thought you got hurt_, he said silently to her. She shook her head. _Then what was that scream_?

_Someone else_, she mouthed, turning away as the guard looked her direction, only to spot Toph having her wrist healed. She must have spent quite some time staring at her because the blind earthbender just smiled and shook her head.

_We need to talk,_ Toph mouthed to Katara.

The waterbender nodded. _Wait for my signal._

Toph gave the slightest nod and her sightless green eyes were fixed on the healer in front of her.

"Hey you, waterbender, are you going to stare all day or are you going to work?" one of the guards asked. Katara went back to her work, trying her hardest not to smile and to contain her excitement. She couldn't wait to talk to Toph. Knowing the Blind Bandit, she probably knew of some escape route off this strange island.

* * *

The dreary weather outside seemed to match Zuko's mood perfectly. He and the others had returned to the Fire Nation only to find out that the men they had interrogated hadn't revealed any valuable information. They had been question by several different advisors, Lt. Toru, Aang, and Zuko himself and still no new information was withdrawn. Zuko found it infuriating and if people hadn't been kidnapped, he would have washed his hands of the whole affair.

"Zuko," Sokka called, momentarily distracting him from his thoughts. "Take a look at this."

Zuko took a seat next to Sokka and Aang at the table. The tabletop was strewn with several smaller maps of each of the continents, a larger world map, and all the maps Sokka had copied from the rebel hideout. Aang and Sokka had written all sorts of notes on the side and made all sorts of strange markings over all of the maps. Zuko didn't understand any of it, but he waited patiently for the warrior and the Avatar to explain it to him.

"We checked all these maps," Sokka said, pointing to several small ones next to him. "And they are full of places that aren't on a regular map. It might be a good idea to check them out, but there's a lot of them."

"How many exactly?" Zuko inquired.

" Dozens," said Aang. "They're all islands. It would take too long for us to search all of them."

"So we sent a messenger hawk to Oyaji, the village leader on Kyoshi, asking him if some of the Kyoshi warriors would help us. And maybe you could get some of your troops to help," Sokka suggested.

"I don't know if that's a good idea," Zuko admitted. "But we'll figure something out."

"I hope so," Sokka said, leaning back and closing his eyes. "I don't know how much longer I can keep this up."

* * *

"I don't know about the rest of you," Sheng said, slumping to the floor. "But I'm so tired, I could fall asleep here."

The other healers all nodded and whispered in agreement. Only Katara wasn't paying attention. She was staring at the guards all clustered in one room, playing music, singing and drinking.

"Do the guards play music every night?" She asked.

"No," one healer replied. "Just whenever they feel like it. As a matter of fact, they keep their instruments in that small room next door. I saw a flute. You know, I used to be quite good with a flute when I was little. I'd love to give it a try."

"A flute," Katara said, thoughtfully. She didn't really know how to play, but she had an idea that just might work.

* * *

Toph met Mai and Suki in the woods behind the infirmary. The night sky was littered with stars and a crescent moon swung low across the sky. There were several sentries of duty outside the hut, but after a couple of hours, they disappeared and the three girls heard the sound of music and faint traces of laughter.

"So what exactly is Katara's signal?" Mai whispered as the night drew on and the music grew more pronounced.

Toph shrugged. "I don't know, but I'm sure we'll recognize it."

The music from within was suddenly drowned out by another, louder song. At first, the three girls couldn't make out anything other than that the player was a horrible musician, but after a while, the notes began to sound like a song. It took them a while to figure it out, but when they did, they realized the song was the signal.

"It's the song the band played at Zuko's coronation," Mai cried in a whisper. "That must be the signal."

"And Katara must be tone deaf," Toph muttered. "That song was awful."

"At least we recognized it," Suki said. "If we ever get off this island, remind me to tell her to take music lessons."

* * *

Transporting prisoners was a dangerous job, so when the captain of the last ship headed from the Earth Kingdom to the Boiling Rock agreed to command the vessel with some of the most dangerous prisoners, he knew it wasn't going to be an easy job. He had twenty years of experience ferrying prisoners back and forth to maximum security prisons, but still, nothing could have prepared him for this. When his first mate had told him that the cabins below deck were on fire, the captain's first reaction was to get some help in putting them out. But the ship started sinking long before he could do that, so he and his subordinates deployed the smaller vessel that was held just in case of emergencies and rounded up all of the prisoners, including those who had attempted to escape. Of course, there was always one person missing, and the first mate had the unfortunate pleasure of reporting it to the captain.

"We managed to round up all the prisoners, Captain," The first mate said. "All except Prisoner A31." The Captain frowned and turning his back on the first mate, made his way back to his cabin, his heavy footsteps the only sound that echoed within the silent ship.

On the shores of a seemingly deserted island, several miles from Full Moon Bay, a dark silhouette washed up on the shore. Not a single creature bothered to touch the figure and for a while, the silhouette just lay there, face down on the beach as the waves lapped at the shore. A few minutes passed before the figure stood up on unsteady legs and staggered inland. The following morning, when the tides had receded, no one noticed the waves bring in a wooden placard with A31 painted on it in bold red letters.

* * *

_Thank you for all the wonderful reviews. You're all amazing! ^-^_

_~ Cassie_


	7. The Girl Who Told A Thousand Lies

_I finally got around to posting this. I finished writing it a while ago, but something didn't seem right, so I spent a lot of time editing it. I hope it's okay now. Enjoy!_

* * *

**Chapter VI: The Girl Who Told A Thousand Lies**

Colonel Mongke stared hard at his two attendants. He was mildly upset that neither of them was shaking or looked the least bit nervous. He let his amber eyes rest on them and waited. And waited. Neither of them, however, bothered to offer an explanation for what had happened. So, he took it upon himself to start the conversation.

"I hope you gentlemen have an explanation for what happened the other day?"

The attendants nodded.

"Well," the Colonel growled. "What is it?"

"The prisoner, sir, took away our bending."

"Oh really?" Mongke asked, skeptically.

"Yes sir. She hit us and we couldn't bend. Haven't been able to find her since."

Colonel Mongke just passed a hand over his face. "I can't afford to send anyone else after her, so you two will have to find her. And no more slip ups this time." The two men nodded and ducked out of the room, muttering to each other how much they truly detested their job and Mongke.

* * *

Aang awoke to the sound of angry yelling and thumping and shuffled to his door to see what all the commotion was about. When he opened the door, he was surprised to find Zuko standing there, looking slightly irritated.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Ty Lee may have been onto something when she said that we might be targeted next. Were you sleeping?"

Aang grinned sheepishly. "Sorry. But it's really hard to look at these proposals for the new project when we haven't gotten sleep and when we should be looking for the others."

"Forget the proposals," Zuko said. "We might need to help the palace guards."

"You mean there are rebels here?"

Zuko nodded. "The palace guards are taking care of them, but barely. I'll have to talk to my uncle about that. They're good, but they might not be good enough if the rebels decide to send better reinforcements."

"Then let's leave before they send reinforcements," Aang said. "Sokka said he was looking at the maps again. He must have found something by now."

"I think I have," Sokka exclaimed, barging in. "There's this island not far from here and Lt. Toru said it was vaguely familiar to him. It could be the palace that we're looking for. He's already packed most of the supplies we need, so let's go."

"Finally, something interesting to do," Zuko said, grinning.

"About time too," Aang added, following the two out the door. "I'm going to go insane if I have to read another proposal on how to increase fruit and vegetable production."

* * *

"Are you sure this is the place?" Ogodei asked, glancing at the run down building and then at Kahchi. "Not much of anything."

"This _was_ the place," Kahchi said. "But it must have changed hands or something since the last time we were here."

"Either that, or Firelord Zuko must have gotten rid of the Black Market altogether," Yeh-Lu said.

"It's not that easy to get rid of it," Vachir said, sagely. "It's probably around here somewhere. I'm sure we'll find it eventually."

"We don't have time to find it," Ogodei cried. "The longer we spend here, the greater the risk of us being recognized. I don't know about you, but, quite frankly, I don't want to end up in jail again."

"Well," Kahchi said, thoughtfully. "There's one other place I can think of where we might be able to find komodo-rhinos, but it'll involve our…skills."

His three companions exchanged glances before grinning.

"Lead the way, Kahchi," Yeh-Lu said. "This promises to be fun."

* * *

"Hi there," Ty Lee said, walking over to the strange girl sitting under a tree. "You need help?"

The girl raised her amber eyes and looked at Ty Lee. "Where am I?"

She shrugged. "I don't know, but if those men have been bothering you, I can help."

"Men? What men?"

"You mean they haven't come after you?"

"The captain and his crew? No, I guess they haven't."

Ty Lee stared at the strange girl whose face paint reminded her of the Kyoshi Warriors. The girl caught her glance and laughed.

"Oh don't worry," she said. "I'm not one of them. I'm from a long race of female warriors. You've probably never heard of us, but we live on a remote island quite far from here."

"I was talking about the men on this island but you must mean someone else."

The girl nodded. "I was taken hostage by a captain and his crew. They were going to send me to the Boiling Rock prison in the Fire Nation because I'm the princess, but our ship caught on fire and I wound up here."

"I'm Ty Lee. What's your name?"She wondered, noticing the girl clutching a wooden placard with A31 painted on it in big, red letters.

"Just call me Princess," the girl said. "I'd like to get to know you better before I tell you my name."

Ty Lee just blinked at the girl before giving in. "Sure," she said, laughing. "If that's what you want." The Princess just smiled and followed Ty Lee when she offered to take her to get some food.

This girl is weirder than I am, Ty Lee thought. But something about the girl's aura told Ty Lee that there was more to the strange girl than she knew.

* * *

Katara met Toph, Suki, and Mai in a small cave in the woods during her lunch break. She was supposed to be with the other healers, but the guards never bothered to watch them, so slipping away had been easy.

"I can't believe you recognized the signal," she said.

"Me neither," Toph said. "Have you ever heard of a thing called a music teacher?"

"You really could do with some lessons," Suki said, gently.

"Maybe I'll try later," Katara said. "I'm still surprised you managed to figure everything out."

"It wasn't easy," Mai muttered. "But luckily, I happened to know all the songs that were played for Zuko's coronation, so it wasn't impossible."

"For her," Suki corrected. "Toph and I had no idea how she knew to meet you in this cave, but we decided to listen to her, anyway."

"It's part of the song," Mai began, but Toph cut her off.

"I hope you've got some good news," the blind earthbender said.

"I know why we're here," Katara said, as she began to explain. Five minutes later, all three of the others were looking at her as if she had just said she had been able to firebend.

"You're joking," Mai said. "This is crazy. There's no way that's true."

"I know it seems ridiculous," Katara admitted. "But it's true. I've been healing people ever since I got here."

"So this firebender is just looking for people he can challenge?" Toph questioned.

Katara nodded. "I don't know if he and his men picked us out because we helped bring Ozai down or because we just looked like we could put up a fight against him."

"Any idea who this firebender is?" Suki asked, hopefully.

"Sort of," Katara replied. "According to another healer, he used to work for Ozai and at one point, he was tracking us."

"He was?" Toph asked, her sightless green eyes wide with surprise.

Katara nodded. "The healer said the firebender used to hunt the Avatar, but that narrows it down to just about all the bad firebenders we've met. "

"Anything else?" Suki wondered.

"He must have been in the military because he's a Colonel."

"Then I might know who he is," Mai said. "But see if you know who he is before I guess."

"That shouldn't be too hard," Katara grinned. "He's coming to 'observe' us healers today."

* * *

Iroh knew the minute Zuko had temporarily put him in charge that something was bound to go wrong. It wasn't as if he was incapable, but the former General was sure that the minute Zuko left, someone, somewhere would try something. It was only a matter of three days before the guards came to him to report something stolen.

"We have no idea how it happened, Sir," a Commander said. "But four komodo-rhinos have been stolen and there's no trace how."

The following morning, Iroh met with a newly assigned admiral.

"The ship that was supposed to bring prisoners from the Earth Kingdom to the Boiling Rock has disappeared."

"Anything else?" Iroh asked, dully.

"Well, my subordinates say there're rumors that Azula escaped."

Wordlessly, Iroh made his way to the aviary to dispatch a message to Zuko. He knew very well just how Zuko would react.

* * *

"Escaped?" The piece of paper in Zuko's hand burst into flames and Appa gave a dull roar as if to remind the firebender that he hated fire, especially while they were flying. "Azula's escaped."

"You sure about this?" Sokka asked, his eyes never leaving the map he was scrutinizing.

"Well, Uncle says they're just rumors, but knowing her she probably has escaped."

"So what do you want to do?"

Zuko shrugged. "I should probably go back, but I feel like we're actually getting somewhere."

"I could go back, Sir," Lt. Toru offered but Zuko shook his head.

"We need you to identify the island."

"So what are you going to do?" Sokka asked.

Zuko shrugged. "I don't know."

"You know, you don't have to go back," Aang said. "If it's just a rumor, it's probably not true and even if it is, your uncle can handle Azula easily."

"I guess," he said, somewhat unsure.

"And anyway," Sokka said. "You wouldn't be able to go back. Appa's come too far to turn around and go all the way back to the Fire Nation."

"It's not like we found the others, though," Zuko pointed out. "You could drop me off at the nearest village and…"

"That'd be too far, Sir." The Lieutenant said. "Better to just keep looking. We're getting closer."

* * *

"I really shouldn't have done that, but she asked, so I did. If you ever get out of this mess, what are you going to tell your father? I could tell him I tried, but he'd be a fool to believe that and in any case…"

"Who are you talking to?" Ty Lee asked, noticing that the Princess was muttering unintelligibly to no one in particular.

"No one," the girl said hastily. "Just myself."

Ty Lee handed her some food she had found and sat down beside her. The Princess was more preoccupied with her face paint than with her food, so Ty Lee just wrapped it back up in a piece of paper she had stolen and watched the girl work. She was in the process of mixing dark berries to make the blue-black paint that covered her face. A fairly large leaf with red paint was at her side and she had already retraced the elaborate patterns on her face.

"Do you always wear the paint?" Ty Lee wondered.

"Yes," the Princess lied.

"You never take it off."

"No." Another lie.

"Does it represent anything?"

"Yes."

"What?"

"Um…honor, I believe." Four lies in the span of a few seconds. The Princess was mildly surprised that Ty Lee believed all of it.

"You seem kind of familiar," Ty Lee said, wishing the Princess would take off her face paint. "Are you sure you haven't been in the Fire Nation?"

"I've never left my island," the Princess lied. "I've been to the Fire Nation once, long ago, but I was still a baby. I haven't left my island since then because I was punished."

"Why?"

"I…used to lie a lot. My people used to call me the Spider Princess because I could weave and spin lies like a spider weaves a web. Of course, that was when I was little. When I had to opportunity to go, I just didn't want to."

"How do I know everything you're telling me is true?" Ty Lee wondered. "If you're so good at lying, why should I believe you?"

"Why should I lie to you if you're going to help me?" the Princess demanded. "I have no reason to."

Ty Lee sighed. "I used to have a friend like you. She was really good at lying too, but no one called her the Spider Princess or anything. Her name was Azula."

"The Fire Nation Princess?"

"Yeah. How did you know if you've never left your island?"

The girl shrugged. "I hear things. Just because I haven't left doesn't mean others haven't."

"She was…a little crazy, but I'm sure there's some good in her, somewhere."

"Where is she now?"

"She's supposed to be in prison, but who knows?"

"I see."

"Where did you say you were supposed to be?"

"The Boiling Rock. That's what the Captain said. I'm told it's a maximum security prison."

"It is. So why are you being taken there? It's not the place for kidnapped princesses."

"I may have accidentally hurt someone in the fight before I was taken from my island."

"Oh," Ty Lee said, turning around slightly upon hearing some rustling in the bushes. "Well, I'm going to go look for some more food. We're going to need supplies if we're going to get off this island."

The Princess merely nodded, wondering if Ty Lee suspected that almost everything she had been told was a lie.

* * *

Colonel Mongke watched the healers worked and turned his gaze to the guards he hired. He had selected them among hundreds of men, but now he was wishing he hadn't. Lately, they were becoming lazy and lounging on duty. He had already caught several men relaxing an hour past their break and he had threatened to send them back to where they came from, mostly prisons in the Fire Nation. But he didn't know how much longer he could allow the mistakes before he went insane and used his firebending on them.

He thought about the other Rough Rhinos and what he would give to have them back. He knew they could certainly help him enforce the rules on the island. He had already lost four of the prisoners and several others had made escape attempts. With the other Rough Rhinos back, the number of escape attempts would probably decrease, he thought. And it could be fun having my old friends back. With that thought in mind, Mongke set off to find some way to contact his comrades.

* * *

It was raining the second time Katara left the infirmary. Getting away hadn't been easier this time because most of the guards who had been on duty outside had congregated inside to escape the rain. She getting out was the easy part. Slipping back in would be much harder. She didn't even really want to stay, but as Toph pointed out, she was their only source of information and she needed to stay there just a little longer.

She found the others huddled deep in the cave, trying unsuccessfully to build a fire for light. They looked bored out of their minds, so Katara hoped the news she had for them would at least make them feel a little better.

"I know who the firebender is," she said.

"Is it Colonel Mongke?" Mai asked. "He was the only person I could think of."

Katara nodded. "Yeah, it was. He's the leader of the Rough Rhinos, right?" Mai nodded. "We only really fought him once. We barely know him, so I guess he didn't take us just because we defeated Ozai and cost him his job."

"I know he didn't," Mai said. "Because I don't think I've met him before and yet I'm still here. And I'm not too sure, but I think Ty Lee's here too. I was walking through the woods on my way here and I thought I heard her."

"Ty Lee?" Suki said. "But she's supposed to be on Kyoshi Island. If Mongke and his men were going to take her, why didn't they just take her when they took me?"

"Who knows?" Katara said. "But if Mongke is here, where are the other Rough Rhinos?"

* * *

Iroh thought the day couldn't possibly get any worse, but when one of Zuko's advisors came to speak with him, he knew without a doubt something bad had happened.

"I had the Admiral and his subordinates relay the orders to all the prisons in the Fire Nation and we've just received news. All prisoners are accounted for except for Azula and four men part of a rhino-riding group, I believe. From the looks of things, Azula might be easy to track down, but the men are long gone."

* * *

It was late when Katara returned to her room, so she didn't think anyone would see her as she slipped in, but the wizened old man who she had often seen prowling about, was in her room before she could close the door. He stood in the doorway, his hands clasped behind his back, while his eyes slowly looked her over.

"You've been gone an awful long time, young lady."

"There were lots of people to heal, today," she replied evenly.

"You haven't been talking to those men, have you?"

"Which men?" she wondered.

The old man pointed to several figures working in the courtyard and she recognized Haru and Sheng among them.

"No," she lied, wondering why he asked and why they were working at such a late hour.

"Alright," the man said, stroking his moustache. "Tomorrow, you won't be going to work."

"I won't?" she stammered.

"No. You'll be coming with me."

"Why? I haven't done anything."

"Precisely. Now get some sleep. I'll see you at dawn." He smiled and left, closing the door behind him.

Katara stood still for a few minutes, utterly confused and wondering what just happened. She thought maybe the man had been mistaken, but he seemed sure she was who he needed to talk to. Suddenly, going to see the others didn't seem possible anymore. What would they do when she didn't show up tomorrow? Katara suddenly felt nervous. None of the guards or Mongke had really noticed her or bothered with her, so why were they interested in her now?

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	8. Wild Ride

**Chapter VII: Wild Ride**

Katara slept fitfully that night. Intermittent dreams of Sokka and Aang looking for her, of strange men chasing her, and falling into a yawning darkness filled her head as she hovered on the threshold of sleep and consciousness. For the first time in what felt like ages, she had butterflies in her stomach and was so nervous she almost felt like crying.

_Get a grip, Katara. _She told herself. _Think of something else._ She wished she was back in her room in the cottage Suki had given her and Sokka after the war. She should have been on Kyoshi Island, having fun and relaxing with her friends, but as luck would have it, she was stuck on some godforsaken island in the middle of nowhere. And it didn't help that almost all her friends were too.

Katara turned over on her bed and tried to clear her mind in a feeble attempt to get some sleep. But she found herself thinking about Aang. What was he doing? She knew he and Zuko were probably still slaving over boring proposals, but she couldn't help wondering if they knew what had happened. Surely the minute Sokka couldn't find her or Suki, he'd have alerted Zuko and Aang. Unless they, too, had been brought to the island.

"I hope not."

The sound of her own voice echoing across the silence of the night frightened her. With a muffled groan, Katara turned the other way and curled up. She was beyond tired and she wanted more than anything to fall into a dreamless sleep, but she was denied that pleasure. She sighed. Suddenly, she wanted someone to save her. She was tired of healing all the poor, unfortunate benders who came here, tired of sneaking out to see her friends, tired of trying to look for the seemingly nonexistent escape routes. Tired, tired, tired. She knew she was more than capable of escaping herself, that she _should_ have tried to find an escape route, but right now she just wanted someone to walk in and tell her that a boat was waiting to take her and the others back to Kyoshi. But it was wishful thinking, and as she closed her eyes and made one last attempt to get some sleep, she thought that was all it would ever be.

She awoke to a guard shaking her awake, the following morning. Her first reaction was to waterbend whoever it was away, but the guard had a strong grip on her hands.

"Don't scream," he whispered, clamping a hand over her mouth. "Just get up and follow me."

Resisting the urge to yell at him, Katara did as she was told. The sun was just peeking over the horizon and Katara hoped the guard knew that a lack of sleep made her irritable and clumsy. She didn't care what he would do to her, but if she was too tired to do something, she wasn't going to do it.

"Where're you from?" The guard asked.

Katara stopped walking, rubbing the last remnants of sleep from her eyes. "What?"

"Where did you come from?"

"Why do you care?"

The guard grunted. "Look, my sister-in-law's from one of the Water Tribes. Just wanted to know if you knew her. So, which Water Tribe are you from?"

"Southern," Katara replied, thinking it wouldn't hurt to tell him. It wouldn't make a difference to a guard.

"Nice place," he said. "Or so I've been told."

"It is."

"I heard they have a really nice spa there."

"I think that's the Northern tribe. My tribe is smaller."

"I could do with a day at the spa," the guard grumbled. "I could do with a better job."

"I thought you and your friends liked this job," Katara said.

"You kidding? Look at me: I'm talking to a prisoner because I'm so bored." He sighed. "The pay's pretty decent, higher than most jobs, so I took it, but now I'm regretting it."

"You should."

"Look, it's different for you. Your tribe was untouched by the war, so I'm sure when you go home…"

"You mean if I go home?" the waterbender interrupted, dully.

"Whatever. If, and when, you go home, you'll be fine; I'm sure your people are prosperous and well off. But for some of us, the war hit us hard and people are desperate enough to take what they can get."

Katara didn't bother explaining to him that the Southern Water Tribe had nearly crumbled when the war came to them. Instead, she wordlessly followed the guard through the winding corridors to a courtyard outside.

An old man was hunched against the fountain in the courtyard with his back turned to her and for a moment, Katara wondered if she was brought to heal him but as he turned around, she realized that he was the same old man who had approached her the night before and he certainly didn't look like he needed healing.

"This is where I leave you" the guard behind her whispered. "Good luck."

"We'll begin," the old man said, even before Katara had the time to register what was going on. "Choose whichever stance you like."

"Choose what?" she asked.

"Don't gawk, young lady. I haven't got all day. Choose a fighting stance."

"But…"

"Very well. Have it your way. I'll begin." The old man inhaled deeply and exhaled, and from where she was standing, Katara could make out the pulsing ball of fire glowing in his hands. Giving her a small smile, he flung it at her and simply waited. He half expected her to continue staring, and she might have too if her reflexes hadn't been too good. But being a master waterbender came in handy when there were multiple water fountains in the courtyard and the old man didn't keep up his game for very long before Katara had outmaneuvered him.

"Well done," he said, bowing to her. "I'm quite pleased. You may resume you duties, healer." And with no further explanation, he walked away.

* * *

"Sir," Lieutenant Toru asked. "Might we land the bison? I'm feeling a little airsick."

Zuko sighed. "We might as well. We've combed through almost every single island in this area and we still haven't found a trace of them."

"Maybe we're doing something wrong?" Sokka suggested as Appa landed in a small clearing.

"I think we're overanalyzing this," Aang said, airbending their supplies for the night down.

"He's right," Lt. Toru said. "There really isn't much to decipher. There's no hidden pattern among the people who have been taken; it's all done at random. The only thing they have in common is that they're excellent fighters, whether they're benders or not."

"That's real helpful," Sokka muttered as he handed Toru a bowl. "I wish Katara was here. I can't cook for my life."

"We know," Zuko said, eyeing the food Sokka had prepared earlier. "What is this dark stuff?"

He shrugged. "It looked like sea prunes, so I stewed them."

Lt. Toru suddenly gave a cry. "I've seen these before," he exclaimed. "On the island where I was held captive."

"So?" Sokka said.

Toru grinned. "They're uncommon on the mainland, actually. They're only known to grow in two remote, isolated regions and the other one just happens to be here," he said, withdrawing the map and pointing to a small island. "That's the island we're looking for."

"You sure about this?" Sokka asked.

"Its common sense," Toru chuckled. "These fruit only grow in the Earth Kingdom's outer isles so we can eliminate all these places." Hs tossed a stack of the maps they had copied in the rebel hideout to the side. "These fruit, if I remember correctly, only grow in these regions so that rules out all these places." More maps were tossed aside. "And we've looked everywhere in this region, so this other one has to be it."

"And if it isn't?" Zuko wondered.

Lt. Toru shrugged. "Then we're back to where we were before. But trust me, sir. I'm convinced we've found the right place. After all, I was there."

"Let's hope we have," Zuko said. "I don't think I can take much more travelling or eating Sokka's cooking."

"You realize it'll take us two days to get there, right?" Aang asked. "Appa can't fly for hours on end; he'll have to stop sometime."

"He says it's the right place," Sokka said. "So it must be. And two days isn't so bad. We'll probably be there before we know it."

Aang nodded. He didn't know what they expected to find, really, but as long as Katara and the others were okay, he didn't care.

* * *

Iroh sat in the dimly lit throne room and sighed. This is why I didn't become the Firelord, he thought, glancing at the group of advisors assembled before him. Since Zuko's departure, he had been plagued with proposals and problems to the point where he couldn't take two steps without running into someone with some concern or other. He almost regretted letting Zuko and the others handle all of this. They had done a marvelous job, but it was very tiring and Iroh felt guilty for not helping him sooner.

"General Iroh," someone called. "What should we do about the escaped convicts?"

Find them? Iroh wanted to reply. What else would they do? "Send out a search party to apprehend them, Captain."

"Sir, what about Princess Azula? Are the rumors true?" Someone else demanded.

Iroh shrugged. "I'll look into that."

"It appears we've also got some trouble with a bounty hunter," another said, pulling out a "wanted" poster with a crude drawing on it. "Jun."

Iroh laughed. "Perhaps I should invite her for tea someday," he chuckled, earning a few disconcerted glances. "She's hardly a threat, though. Don't worry about her."

"And what about the proposal to increase agricultural production, Sir? Should we…?"

"That can wait," Iroh said, getting up. "I'm going to have some tea. Would anyone care to join me?"

The officials just looked baffled as Iroh left.

* * *

For the first time in a long while, Colonel Mongke had left the isolation of his island and journeyed back to the Fire Nation. Now, sitting in the dim orange glow that filled one of the old Rough Rhino hideouts, Mongke hoped he hadn't made a mistake. But he needed to find the others, if only to keep his…business going. Idly, he played with the flame from the candle as he sat and waited. He couldn't imagine the others would be too happy that he hadn't broken them out of prison, but he knew from the posters hanging around that his comrades had managed to escape all on their own. He knew, however, that they would probably enjoy helping him. They were hunters after all and after all that time in prison, he was sure anything would seem better to them than rotting in jail.

The door to the hideout suddenly swung open and Mongke smiled as four men ducked in.

"Well, if it isn't the boss," Kahchi said, gesturing to Mongke. "You finally decided to grace us with your presence?"

"Something like that," Mongke said. "I didn't think you'd all come here."

"We weren't going to," Yeh-Lu admitted. "It was an impromptu visit to pick up some new weapons."

"Do you four have a plan?" Mongke wondered. "Or are you wandering about aimlessly looking for something to do?"

Ogodei made a face. "We had a plan, but now…"

"Then I think you'll find my offer to your liking," Mongke said, standing up. "We haven't got much time to lose. Do you have transportation to the docks?"

"Of course," Vachir began. "But…"

"Then follow me," Mongke said, barreling past them and heading out the door. He stopped, however when he saw the komodo rhinos waiting outside. "Aren't these from the royal palace."

The other four nodded. Mongke just grinned. "Rough Rhinos," he said, mounting on and turning in the direction of the docks. "To the docks. Our fun is just about to begin."

* * *

In one of the many rooms in Mongke's stronghold, most of the guards had gathered together in an assembly. Mongke himself was in the Fire Nation, so the guards used the opportunity to discuss some pressing matters concerning their employer and their job. Mongke had never really earned any of their respect nor had he instilled fear in any of them, despite his legendary status as leader of the Rough Rhinos, so the guards who served under him weren't too afraid of getting caught by him. No, their fear was slightly different. Above all else, they feared that their true motives for working under him would be discovered.

"We've been here a while," a guard began, addressing his comrades seated before him. "Clearly, Mongke doesn't have the same intention we have."

The seated men nodded and a low murmur swept through the crowd. Most of the men who worked as guards had been prisoners incarcerated for their crimes after the century war. Needless to say, when Mongke had promised them freedom and decent wages if they worked for him, most of them had accepted. Somehow, they thought Mongke's game was just a ruse and that he was secretly gathering an army to bring Ozai back to power. But after a while, it became apparent that Mongke wasn't concerned about anything other than his game and the guards had taken it upon themselves to organize and form a secret group. To Mongke, the men were nothing more than prisoners he had hired for his game, but in reality, amongst themselves, the prisoners liked knowing they were rebels and secretly plotted to dethrone the current Firelord. Mongke's job had just been a catalyst; it had brought most of them together. Now, they only needed to pick a time to strike.

"When the Colonel returns," the guard said. "We strike. We need to capture all the benders, healers, everyone. Before this, we absolutely must make sure that there is no way off the island for Mongke and the people he had brought here. We don't want them revealing us before we get to the Fire Nation. And traitors within our ranks must be dealt with severely. Is that understood?"

The men nodded and cheered.

"There are some men here who don't believe in what we do. They too must be dealt with. As soon as Mongke lands, we strike. We'll give him an insurrection unlike any other."

* * *

Ty Lee knew that Mai had been kidnapped, but she had been shocked when she ran into Mai, Suki, and Toph hiding in a cave on the same island she was trying to escape from. It hadn't taken long for them to exchange stories and pretty soon, Ty Lee understood just why the trio had been hiding in a damp, dark cave. Any initial pleasure she had at seeing her friends instantly faded after everything they told her. Despite having worked with Azula, Ty Lee couldn't imagine why someone would go to all that trouble Mongke had gone through just for amusement. She understood that the Colonel had been the leader of the Rough Rhinos and that hunting was his specialty, but she didn't see the need to make it a hobby. She'd have much rather seen him helping with the restoration projects around the world, but that was wishful thinking. Men like him seldom changed their ways overnight.

"Mai?" Ty Lee asked suddenly. "Do you think Azula would ever escape prison?"

Mai cast a glance in her direction and shrugged. "I don't know. Azula does whatever she wants. Why do you ask?"

"Because there's this princess who was supposedly kidnapped from her island and she washed up on shore when her boat drowned. She was supposed to go to the Boiling Rock."

"You think she's Azula?" Toph asked.

Ty Lee shrugged. "I can't tell. She wears too much face paint. And lately, she's been concerned about how she looks and all that. It could be her, but I have no way of knowing. She wouldn't even tell me her name."

"That's strange," Suki muttered. "But then again, Azula's good at lying and disguising herself."

"I don't think she's Azula; she's very cautious about what she does and who she talks to. It took forever for her to start trusting me," Ty Lee said. "And her aura is different than Azula's; it's just that sometimes, she reminds me of Azula, so I can't help but wonder."

* * *

Katara knew she was dreaming. There wasn't any other explanation to describe the situation. It had to have been a dream because she was on Kyoshi Island with Aang, Sokka and Suki and they were waiting at the docks for a ship to come with Zuko, Mai and Toph. There weren't any crazy firebenders, any rude guards, and any healers, just the four of them talking and laughing as they waited for the others to arrive. For the first time since she had been brought to the island, she felt happy and she never wanted the dream to end, but she was rudely hauled to her feet and the last remnants of sleep shaken from her. She nearly screamed when she saw the wizened old man standing before her, his face just inches from hers.

"Are you awake?" he whispered.

"Yes," Katara hissed. "I am now."

"Good. Get ready, healer. You're coming with me again."

Suddenly, Katara didn't care if the man was old or wizened or even that he was a firebender; she wanted to use everything she had against him to make him see that despite the way he treated her, she was not an animal and if she didn't want to go with him, she wouldn't. But she was far too sleepy to put up much of a fight, so she wordlessly complied and followed him for a second time through the winding corridors of the stronghold.

"From now on, you're relieved of your duties as healer," the old man said. "You'll be working with me until the Colonel returns. And then it'll be your turn."

"My turn for what?"

"The challenge, of course."

Katara sighed. She was tiring of this stupid game. Right now, she didn't care what Mongke might make her do, she just wanted to sleep. Perhaps if she tried hard enough, her dreams would find her again and whisk her away to a happier place. It was better than stumbling around in the dark with an old man in any case.

"You should know," the old man said suddenly, his voice so soft he was practically purring. "He isn't coming."

"Who?" Katara wondered, fighting the urge to yawn.

"Aang."

Katara stopped walking and her heart nearly missed a beat. "What? How did you…"

"You talked a bit in your sleep," the old man said, without looking at her. "You've given me some valuable information."

If Katara knew anything about this man, she might have killed him on the spot if she had the strength to. "What kind of information?" she demanded, hoping he couldn't see her embarrassment.

"Let's just say I happen to know your weakness."

"And that would be?"

"Your friends. You care too much about too many people."

"So?"

"The Avatar may come," the old man said, smiling. "But he'll never find you because one of my jobs is to make sure no one ever leaves this island. And I never lose my prey."

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews so far :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	9. Lying in Wait

_A/N: (Cue the horrified gasps) Yes, I'm finally updating this after a nine month gap. ^^ I know with Korra out and everything, none of this is possible, but I hate leaving stories unfisinished (even if I took a ridiculously break that made it seem like I would never finish this) and I seem to get some sort of amusement from writing out crazy scenarios that would most likely never happen to begin with. ^^ This chapter isn't really action-packed and it's a little on the short side, but I figured if I posted a chapter now, then I'd get back into the routine of working on this story and updating it. Not much else to say other than I hope this isn't a complete failure of a chapter and that someone ,somewhere is still reading this. Enjoy! ^^_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything. _

* * *

**Chapter VIII: Lying in Wait**

"Let me get this straight," Ogodei said. "You came to find us because you need help with this little-how did you put it-_business_ of yours?"

Mongke nodded. "I thought I made that clear an hour ago."

Ogodei leaned against the railing of the ship and gazed at the waves that rolled up against the side of Mongke's vessel. He had mixed feelings about this.

"Your business seems like lots of fun," he said. "But it also seems stupid. What if we get caught?"

Mongke smiled. "We won't be sentenced to death if that's what you're wondering. I'm not killing people. I have healers to heal them."

"But what you're doing is close enough," Vachir muttered. "We'll be lucky to escape if anyone finds us on that island."

"I'd like to make one thing clear," Mongke growled, glaring at the other Rough Rhinos. "I know the consequences of my actions. I am not killing people. You think I don't know what would happen if I did? Firelord Zuko would have my head for that and quite frankly, I'd prefer it if my head was attached to my body. I'm a hunter; hunting is what I do and I'm doing it. I select only the best warriors; if they die, it's their fault, not mine. And as of late, not a single person has died."

"What about how you treat them?" Kahchi asked. "It sounds like what you do is fun, but if we're going to be a part of it, I want to make sure that everything we do is okay in case we get caught."

"I treat them just fine," Mongke snapped. "They might not be pleased with it, but I give everyone shelter and food and I've had a few people escape. I haven't gone after them."

"You must have done something to them," Yeh-Lu said, knowing his leader well enough to know that no matter what, Mongke never let people go just like that.

Mongke scowled. "I might have had a few healers distort their memories, nothing serious like giving them amnesia by erasing all their memories."

"But…"

"Look, I know we'd be in trouble if we got caught," Mongke said. "But the worst that could happen to us is that we end up in jail. I haven't done anything to deserve the death penalty, so we won't be executed if that's what you're all worried about."

Kahchi sighed. "If you say so. When do we arrive?"

"As you can see," Mongke said, gesturing to his small ship. "I don't have access to the best transportation anymore. It could take us anywhere from a day to three depending on how fast this floating chunk of metal goes. With any luck, we should be there tomorrow."

* * *

"Ty Lee, could that possibly be you?"

With a cry, Ty Lee tumbled out of her hiding spot in the bushes and gazed up at the princess.

"You just had to blow my cover, didn't you?"

"I'm sorry," the princess apologized. "But what were you doing in a bush?"

Ty Lee pointed through a small opening towards the gated courtyard in the stronghold. Two figures garbed in red and one in blue were bending. It seemed like the figure in blue was winning slightly, but it was hard to say.

"Stay low," she whispered, pulling the girl down to the ground. "Do you want to get caught?"

"Is this what you told me about the other day?" the princess asked, taking in the scene. "That stronghold is Monkey's and…"

"His name is Mongke," Ty Lee sighed. "And yes, it is. He's been collecting benders and warriors to hunt them for his amusement. We need to make sure that we're not seen. It'd probably be safer if we joined the others."

"Your friends?" the princess wondered. "Why? They won't like me."

Ty Lee wanted to tear her hair out. It usually took a lot to make her frustrated but this girl seemed to annoy her all the time. She understood that the princess wasn't ready to trust people so easily, but she didn't see the need for it go this far.

"I hate to say this," Ty Lee said. "But I've put up with your craziness long enough. If you want to get off this island, you can either come with me or find a way off by yourself. If not, you can stay here until someone rescues you. But I'm going to find my friends."

"I'll come," the girl said quietly, though Ty Lee detected a hint of anger in her voice. Her aura suddenly seemed a lot more like Azula's and yet completely different. Was it possible for someone to be like Azula, without actually being Azula herself?

* * *

Within Mongke's stronghold, most of the guards had gathered in the dining hall to discuss what to do. Mongke's arrival had been delayed so a number of the guards had voted to put their plan into motion before the Colonel returned.

"We're all ready," one cried. "So why wait?"

"Because," a voice purred from a dark corner. "I think we might be able to get more than just Mongke if we wait a while."

"What do you mean?" Someone demanded. "Who are you? Show yourself."

The wizened old man emerged from the corner and smiled when all eyes glared at him. "My friends, I understand what you are thinking. How can I, an old man, possibly be of any help to you? The truth is, my friends, I am working for the same goal you are."

"Fine lies, old man. You're Mongke's most loyal follower."

"Merely a ruse," the old man replied. "As his second in command, I have access to things that you mere guards do not. For instance, I have received word from one of our ships patrolling the area that the Firelord and the Avatar are on their way. If you doubt me, feel free to check the aviary with the messenger hawks. The letter is still there."

A low murmur swept through the crowd.

"According to my calculations, they should be here in a few hours. We strike then, once they land."

"What about the Colonel?"

"What about him?"

"What if he's not here by then?"

"We don't need Mongke to be here," the old man said. "We just need to be prepared."

"We _are_ prepared," someone said. "Now, need only to wait for the Firelord and his friends to come."

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_Thanks for reading and thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far. (:_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


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